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after all that rain yesterday, it was supposed to snow overnight. however when i woke up this morning, there was nothing, not even puddles, as if even the rain never happened. that was good news because it meant i didn't need to go to belmont to clean the snow off the solar panels one last time. with spring officially starting tomorrow, could winter be finally over?

i had an almond milk matcha latte and some leftover chicken feet for lunch. i watched my upstairs neighbors go out this morning so i knew they weren't home so i could enjoy some peace and quiet. i left the house by 1:30pm, biking into boston to visit chinatown and haymarket. temperature was in the upper 30's, and even though the sun was out, it was still windy. my upstairs neighbors came back just as i was leaving.

a 26 minute bike ride brought me to c-mart. my bike seat was loose and i had an uncomfortable ride as the seat kept shifting. the c-mart parking lot was as empty as i'd ever seen it before. it makes me wonder if somehow another new asian supermarket opened up nearby funneling business elsewhere? i was basically here to see if they still had large clementines on sale. i bought a bag, along with some dried ginger snack, melon seeds, and spicy konjacs.

from chinatown it was a 9 minute ride up washington street through downtown crossing to haymarket. here there were more people, but still less than pre-pandemic levels, which were already pretty low due to a bunch of businesses shuttering their doors.

the last time i went to haymarket was back in mid-october, 5 months ago. during that time a hotel structure had already been built in that thin stretch of property where they used to pile all the discarded boxes and park the garbage trucks. i didn't come here during all the cold months because the produce get damaged when temperature drops below freezing, like buying frozen vegetables and fruits that only turn to mush once you thaw them at home. besides, winter time is slim pickings anyway. i came here today to see if they had anything new (i was hoping to find some oranges) but it was more of the usual. also this morning the temperature was below freezing so everything still felt frozen. i'll come back again when the weather turns warmer. i didn't leave empty-handed however: 2 boxes of strawberries ($1), 6 nectarines ($2), and 3 lbs. bag of mandarin oranges ($3).

i left haymarket by 2:50pm. it took me 27 minutes to ride back to cambridge via the longfellow bridge. i ate a nectarine and finished the rest of my blue cheese with water crackers.

i started noticing it a few days ago, once i planted my seeds: the reemergence of fungus gnats. maybe they came from the potting soil. luckily i have ways of dealing with fungus gnats, but it's just something else i have to keep track of.

in the evening i heated up the last of my vegetable soup. i ate while watching the latest episode of for all mankind.